UPDATE 3-Three dead in Mexico airport gunfight between police

June 25, 2012|Reuters

* Shootout happened between federal policemen

* Murder rates in capital have been below Mexican average

(Updates with details of suspects in shooting)

MEXICO CITY, June 25 (Reuters) - Three policemen died in ashootout with two other officers suspected of drug traffickingat Mexico City's airport on Monday, as panicked travelersscrambled for cover in the busy facility.

The shootout occurred when three federal officers approachedthe two suspects in the airport's Terminal 2, which handlesinternational and domestic flights. Two agents were killed atthe terminal and another later died of his injuries in hospital.

More than a dozen shots were heard, Milenio Televisionreported. Television footage showed a body lying on the floor ofthe terminal in what appeared to be a publicly accessible areaof the airport.

The suspects, who remain at large, are believed to be partof a larger group of officials involved in a cocaine ring,Mexico's security ministry said in a statement.

Airport spokesman Jorge Gomez told Milenio that aircraftdepartures and arrivals continued normally after the incident.

Mexico City has seen relatively low murder rates compared tothe rest of the country, where drug violence has killed around55,000 people in the past five and half years.

But attacks have been creeping up in the capital and itssurrounding neighborhoods, with more than 300 gangland killingsrecorded last year.

Mexico's airports and ports are busy areas for drugsmugglers. So far this year federal police have seized more than440 pounds (200 kilograms) of cocaine at the capital's airport,double the amount taken there last year.